Blood, Magic, and Hearts
by ColoringTheRain
Summary: IchiRuki AU. Rukia Kuchiki is a young vampire who is accused of commiting a crime she didn't commit. Now her entire coven is after her, and she finds refuge with a young man by the name of Ichigo Kurosaki. As she hides from her impending fate, she discovers that Ichigo may not be the human that she thinks he is... if he even IS human...
1. Chapter 1

_pant pant_

They were close.

_Everything hurts… I can't go much further…_

Rukia winced as she tripped over a fallen branch, leaving more blood as she ran. The words echoed in her mind.

_Rukia Kuchiki, for being guilty of committing forbidden acts with humans, you are now sentenced to death by the counsel…_

A sudden noise to the right. She ran faster.

"I didn't…" _wince_ "…kill him…" she mumbled to herself under her breath.

_The bodies of Kaien Shiba and his wife were found dead three nights ago, drained of blood; an act only committable by a vampire…_

"Sir Kaien…" tears of sorrow joined the ones already formed from pain.

A snarl to the left.

_I know there's shelter… I can feel it._

A final leap opened up to a clearing with several houses.

_I just need to get into one._

She ran top speed towards the nearest house, until a sudden force of instinct pulled her broken body towards the third house from the end. It was definitely further… but her body kept running. Vision blurred and limbs numb, she finally reached the back door and slammed on it with her bloody fist. It opened a second later to the surprised face of a young man with…_orange hair?_

"Please! Please, may I come in?" Rukia begged.

Everything about this situation told the man to shut the door on the bloody stranger immediately and never look back. But by some unexplainable reaction, he nodded once and pulled the injured girl into his home.

The last things Rukia remembered before slipping into unconsciousness, were warmth, the pain melting away, and a pair of soft brown eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

Rukia woke up to the sound of a static television. She was laying down on a couch and kept her eyes shut tight until she remember the night's events and bolted upright.

"Don't call an ambulance!" She cried out while turning her head wildly until her eyes settled on the orange headed stranger sitting a few feet away.

The man sighed. "I didn't. I'm a doctor; I can handle a few cuts, although I must say yours were pretty deep. You have quite a few bruises too." He looked at her, expectantly, with wondering eyes.

_Oh those brown eyes… _Rukia thought to herself before snapping back. She sighed.

"I guess I have a little explaining to do."

"I'll say! It's not often that I have bloody young women knocking at my back door at eleven o'clock at night." He retorted.

"Well I'll start with my name I guess. I'm Rukia Kuchiki."

"Ichigo Kurosaki."

"Nice to meet you. Thanks for… letting me in your house I guess." She closed her eyes and gave a long sigh. "Now here's where it gets a little… weird…"

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "Weird how? As an ER doc I've heard it all really." _Probably some angry boyfriend, ex boyfriend or whatever. I guess she's pretty enough to be a prostitute or something. No… I wouldn't believe that. Gang issues? It's possible for anyone to…_

"How's your belief in the supernatural?"

Ichigo did a double take.

"ww..what?"

"…do you believe in like… well vampires?"

He just sat there for a few seconds, mouth agape at her question. _This girl is nuts…_But she continued to sit there, waiting for a reply, violet eyes waiting. _Oh… that was a serious question._

"Well…" he started. "I, umm. Ghosts… and stuff. That's… ok I think. As for vampires, I've never really…"

"So you don't." She finished.

"N-no. Not really." He muttered.

Rukia sat there quietly for a minute.

"Well I'm a vampire. Ok. I said it." She blurted out and then fell back on the couch and threw an arm over her eyes.

Ichigo looked at her, expecting her to laugh it off as a joke and tell him the truth.

"I'm not lying." She said softly. "Call me crazy, ship me off to the asylum or whatever, but that's really the truth."

Ichigo scratched his head. "Really?" He asked, skeptical.

She said up suddenly and tossed her arms in the air. "Really! Ok! And I can prove it to you! I promise I won't kill you or suck your blood or anything because it's against the rules and I'm already in trouble for it but I didn't even…" she let out an exasperated sigh. "It would really be easier if you just believed me." She finished quietly.

He could see it in her eyes. _She's serious. She's really not lying._

"Vampires?" She nodded. "You said you could prove it. Show me something."

"Uhh…" she started. "Umm. I can levitate! And I'm stronger than I look! But I can't do the bat thing, I'm still only a fledgling so I'm not a full vampire yet…"

"Uh, just do the levitating or lift the couch or whatever." He interrupted.

She smiled as she straightened herself out on the couch and slowly started to rise, laughing as Ichigo's face turned from disbelief, to shock.

"holy crap…" he muttered, getting up from his seat.

"oh no no no! Please don't panic, I just needed you to…"

"Ok I believe you! Vampires, totally real! Just, what are you doing here? I mean I let you in, but why were you all beat up?"

She laid back down on the couch suddenly looking very exhausted.

"It's a long, complicated story that I could tell you but, basically, I'm wanted dead for something I did not do. That I would NEVER do!" Her eyes started to burn as the tears came back along with the memories. "And I tried to run because I'm innocent, and they chased me until I came here. I fought them off pretty well, except for, well, all this." She said gesturing to the bandages. "And I'm so sorry I got you involved because now they'll be looking out for you too and I should have never…" she couldn't hold back the tears anymore.

"Ok, just calm down!" he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Are you safe here?"

Rukia wiped her eyes. "Well if by safe you mean that they can't burst in here in the dead of night and kill me, then yes."

"Then you're staying here." Something inside besides pity drove him to want to protect this girl. _Rukia. _To keep her safe.

"What? Really? I can't… I don't…"

"No excuses!" he interrupted. "I can't throw you out. Not like this at least."

Rukia sighed and flashed a genuine smile. "Thank you."

"No worries. But no sleeping on the couch, I have a guest bed. And a shower. So you can get the," he paused and fished a leaf out of her hair "woods off of you. I'll get some clothes too."

_Finally use the guest room I guess. _Ichigo had never had a use for it because he lived far away from any friends or family; he always ended up traveling to them as opposed to the other option.

Ichigo helped Rukia stand up and hobble down the hallway. "Do vampires even need sleep?" He wondered out loud.

"Not much." Rukia answered. "Fledglings need a little more because they still have some human in them, but after tonight I might just sleep for a week!"

Ichigo chuckled as he flipped on the bathroom light. "I'll get some clothes."

"Thanks. And Ichigo?" His head turned. "Don't let anyone in that you don't know or trust. Vampires can't come in without permission, it keeps you safe."

"So you're the exception?" He joked. She only rolled her eyes as he handed her a change of clothes and then shut the door on his grinning face.

As soon as she shut the door, Rukia leaned her back on it and sighed. _Ichigo Kurosaki…_

_Rukia Kuchiki_. Ichigo thought to himself while his eyes focused on mindless television.

"Ichigo?" He turned his head towards the quiet voice, belonging to the girl dressed in too-big sweats and a t-shirt. "I just wanted to say good-night. And thank you again."

Ichigo smiled at her. He rarely smiled. "Yeah, sleep well."

"You too." She called before disappearing down the hall.

Ichigo tore his eyes from where she was standing a second ago and returned them once again to the mindless television. But that was the last thing on his mind.

_Rukia Kuchiki…_

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***Yay something longer than a page! I hope you enjoyed this chapter; I was worried that I wouldn't be able to do these introductory chapters but this one came out ok! Stick around for the next one; I have no idea when it will get written. ***


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